John Buchan, the former Governor-General of Canada once quoted ‘The task of leadership is not to put greatness in people, but to elicit it, for the greatness that is there already’. Well, this verse best suites the profession of doctors, who are already celebrated professionals amongst the geographical demographics, worldwide for their noble deedthey do treating the patients, but they prove their significance dedicating themselves to each case. There are many doctors who have exemplarily armoured the industry proving their dexterity in the diverse fields of medicine & surgery, and Dr. Priya Bhave Chittawar is one of those names who stands illustrious leveraging her noble service to the healthcare industry as a recognized Gynecologist, Obstetrician and Reproductive Health Specialist (laparoscopy surgery). In an exclusive interview with women entrepreneur magazine, Dr. Priya, Consultant- Reproductive Medicine (IVF) at Bansal Hospital talks about her unique take on gynaecology, laparoscopy surgery and infertility treatment, including the Hospital’s contributions.

Take us through your early educational journey and prior industry experience that you bring to the table. What motivated you to specialize as a Gynecological Laparoscopic Surgeon?

Well, as my mom was a single parent, I grew up around my Masi who was a gynecologist. Looking at the different kind of adulation she had in the community and attachment she developed with the patients, and their generations of families really inspired me. Hence, I pursued Gynecology, but down the line also realized that there are a lot of people who do Obstetrics. So, I did that to, as the industry demands specialists in birth giving and antenatal care section. Further, as I also found there’re very few surgeons who had expertise in laparoscopic surgery, I subsequently also pursued subspecialty qualification in Laparoscopy surgery from Christian Medical College, Vellore. Essentially, I’m trained as a Gynecologist, but my subspecialty qualification is in reproductive medicine and surgery wherein I deal with reproductive disorders in women through medical and laparoscopic surgical treatment, and to some extent men, also. Currently, I am leveraging my expertise at Bansal Hospital (since its inception) as a Consultant - Reproductive Medicine (IVF).

Give us a brief overview of Bansal hospital’s capabilities on the various aspects of natural fertility, infertility, and reproductive health issues that the hospital focuses on?

In its gynecology and obstetrics division the hospital offers the holistic services for the parentcraft classes, and reproductive health & gynaecological needs of women using laparoscopy surgery, backed by a dedicated team of highly qualified & experienced doctors in a comprehensive, compassionate, sophisticated and dedicated manner with highest emphasis on patient safety. Whereas its Reproductive medicine wing holds over two decades of experience dealing with infertility and reproductive disorders of both male and female doing evaluation of infertile couple, hormonal disorders in females, conducting reproductive surgeries, and IVF.

What are the various roles & responsibilities that you currently shoulder as a Gynaecologist? What are some of the most pressing challenges that you face and how do you successfully tackle them?

I'm heading the Reproductive medicine and surgery department (the largest department of its kind in the Central India) at the Bansal hospital. Here, we have a FNB training program (recognized by National Board of Examinations) where we currently train around four-to-five doctors every year in the reproductive medicine & surgery. Here, I deal with women patients who have infertility issues, reproductive disorders, menstrual disorders, including a lot of male infertility issues using IVF, laparoscopic surgery, and other procedures.

As surgery historically has been considered to be a male bastion, me being a ‘woman’ and a ‘woman surgeon’ already has challenges associated with my profession. Second, that follows is the resistance coming from the women patients’ end themselves, avoiding surgeries and critical health procedures, fearing their family responsibilities. And, last comes one that is the case similar to every woman out there, balancing your career with family. However, I am quite fortunate around these aspects, being surrounded by women colleagues all around and having my mom to support with at the home-front. Well, in case of challenges faced with women patients to prioritizing their health, I’ve been trying to tackle that bygiving talks to women in several groups, and colleges through my YouTube channel.

What are your unique features that sets you apart from other surgeons in the country? Tell us about some of the most significant milestones in your career journey so far?

I always feel that surgery is the means to an end, but it's not an end in itself. A good surgeon is a person who knows where to operate and how much to operate, because it’s equally important how well you operate (understanding the before and after effects). I think to have a very good theoretical understanding of the subject, a very good discrimination as to which patient is a good candidate for surgery and in which patients’ we can avoid surgery and just treat them with medicine or with nonsurgical treatments, especially in women is important. I think that’s the distinction I bring to my cases, by not just being a surgeon but a good physician by giving a package of care.

How have you been keeping yourself well aligned with the periodic evolutions happening across your field? Also, how is personal-professional work life balance happening for you?

I always read all the journals, stay connected with internet and attend all the conferences, be it offline or online. Also, since laparoscopic surgery is evolving with the robotics coming into picture, I am 'm training to be a robotic surgeon now. I'm also partnering with a surgical platform company called Proximie to train on distant mentoring of laparoscopy surgery. There's nothing like a balance, it's always a tightrope walk. But I think what has helped me with it is me also being a trained endurance athlete (iron man). The biggest thing I've learned from endurance sport is that you learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable, and you don’t stop until you’re done, without being tired.

Dr. Priya Bhave Chittawar, Obstetrician, Gynecologist, And Laparoscopy Surgeon

A Reproductive Medicine specialist and Best Gynecologist in Bhopal trained in the best institute of India, Christian MedicalCollege, Vellore, Dr. Priya holds expertise in Reproductive medicine and minimal invasive reproductive surgery.